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Funerals
FAQ |
The
Mass
Mass is offered
in this church
according to the rite of the
Roman Catholic Church
The
Mass you have known is the same Mass offered in our
church by an ordained priest, just as it would be
offered in any other Catholic Church.
However,
at Saint Patrick Catholic Church, there are four
important differences which separate this parish from
neighboring Catholic parishes.
First,
during the Penitential Rite, when we pause briefly to
recall our sins and failings, we recite the same
prayer, but the priest, instead of offering a simple concluding prayer, offers General
Absolution to the entire congregation.
This Absolution
is given to all who are disposed to receive
it with the intention to receive forgiveness
of sin, restoration of our relationship with
God, reconciliation with our neighbor, and
preparation for all present to receive Christ
in Holy Communion.
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Second,
during the Eucharistic Prayer, when the
elements of bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ
through the invocation of the Holy Spirit, there are commemorations
made. At this time, like all Catholics, we pray for Pope Benedict
XVI, but at Saint Patrick Catholic Church, in addition to praying
for the Holy Father, we pray also for Patriarch Bartholomew and the
presiding bishop of the Brazilian National Church, Dom Josivaldo
Pereira de Oliveira as well as our diocesan bishop, J. Alberto
Morales, Bishop Abbot of St. Benedict Abbey Nullius, Bartonville,
Ilinois.
Our prayer for the Holy Father
is a sign of our unity with the entire Western Church,
embodied in the person of the Holy Father. We pray also for
Patriarch Bartholomew, the Ecumenical Patriarch of
Constantinople, who embodies the Eastern Orthodox Church, so
that together, we are praying for the Universal Church of
Christ (which, as Pope Bendict has often
said, "must always breathe with both
lungs, East and West"). We also pray for
Dom Luis Castillo Mendes, who enjoys the
honorary title of Patriarch and leads our
National Catholic Church from Brazil where he
succeeded Dom Duarte Costa, the former Roman
Catholic bishop who founded the church.
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Third,
as we ready our hearts to receive Communion, the
broken Host is lifted and presented to us a final
time, with the invocation, Behold the Lamb of God who
takes away the sins of the world, happy are WE who
are called to His Supper.
The phrase "Happy are those
who are called to His Supper" would be
better translated from the Latin as
"Blessed are those who have been called
to the Supper (or Wedding Feast) of the
Lamb!" This passage from the Book of
Revelation and is the Church's way of
reminding us that our participation in the
Eucharistic Feast here on earth is meant to
foreshadow the GREAT feast of the Kingdom.
Now, remember, the Book of Revelation says,
"I saw a throng whom no one could count
standing before the throne of God and of the
Lamb!" Too often when the word THOSE is
used in many Catholic Churches, it is a word
of limitation, exclusion and selection: Some
are IN and some are OUT! Not so, here at
Saint Patrick's! We strive to image the
heavenly banquet of the Lamb by offering
Eucharistic hospitality to the entire
congregation who may then chose to approach
to receive Communion. Our position in
Communion is certainly not to judge those
approaching, but to help and nourish them
with Christ's most precious Body and Blood
causing the wish of Christ, that they all be
one, to become a reality.
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Fourth,
we welcome to receive Holy Communion all of the
faithful present who have been baptized and have a
faith in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist
without exclusion of the divorced, the non-catholic
or any others who find themselves outside of
acceptance within the Roman Catholic Church.
The acceptance of all of the
faithful who approach for Communion has
become a great comfort to many who have been
turned away from Communion in neighboring
parishes, or had to worship apart from family
members due to multi faith families so common
today and those who may not have approached
for many years due to sins committed yet not
forgiven because of uneasiness over private
confession.
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During
the Mass, even a casual visitor will notice a number
of other minor differences (minor to us, but perhaps
refreshing and welcome to visitors).
We do not take up a physical collection
at the offertory
We place a basket
out to receive offerings upon the offertory table in
the middle of the church. Parishioners and visitors
give according to their means.
We do not preach on the topic of
finances.
We try to offer a
helpful, hopeful and uplifting sermon based upon the
scriptures with the idea of providing the basis for
our improving our relationship with God and each
other.
The
Mass is offered with the dignity of traditional music selections.
In an age when traditional
music and beautiful anthems have all but disappeared from
Catholic worship, we keep that spirit alive through the
performance of our parish choir soloist
at the Sunday 10:00 am Mass.
A
caring parish priest greets each person visiting the parish and is
the last person you see, thanking you for
your visit, when you
leave.
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